Learn About Managing Pests In This Article
Contending with household pests of all sorts can be a frustrating experience you will not soon forget. Education is critical to winning this kind of battle once and for all. Keep the advice that follows close at hand, and you will have everything you need to get the job done the right way.
Check your house periodically for openings. You want to make sure that you don't help creatures creep into your home. Search along your foundation and walls to see if there are small holes that little critters can crawl into. If you find holes and spaces, make sure to seal them tight.
If you have a supply of firewood, keep it at least ten feet in distance from the outside of your home. Termites occasionally find and feast on firewood. While this would deprive you of firewood and mean termites in your yard, the space should buffer your home safely from infestation.
Bed bugs like to hide in hard-to-find spaces, which makes them hard to eliminate. Before doing any extermination, make sure you close any open holes. This is so no bugs are just leaving the holes during the extermination process.
If you have cats and dogs, never use rat poison. Even if you do not think they will get into the poison they might eat a rat that has poison in it. You should also avoid these poisons if you have small children. Kids might think the pellets are candy.
Do not assume that pests are completely gone just because you have not seen any. If your exterminator wants to come back for a follow-up you should follow their advice. There is a good chance that there is still a small population in your home that could have come from eggs, so listen to the professional and stick to the follow-up appointment.
Carpet beetles are a real pain in your home. They are naturally attracted to the organic materials in your home. If you want a sure way they will never make permanent camp, fill your rooms with synthetic materials. Make sure your chair upholstery and carpets all contain synthetic materials to repel carpet beetles.
Try talking to friends and family for other tips. Perhaps your neighbor is also having a mouse problem. They might be able to offer you some advice for what did and did not work for them. You can also keep neighbors up-to-date on your pest problems.
Leaving food crumbs on the floors of your home is uncleanly, but did you know that it could cause an ant infestation? Ants love the smell of food and leaving it around is giving them an invitation to enter your home. Clean up after yourself and store uneaten food in your fridge.
Using caulk on any openings or holes helps keep pests out. You would be surprised at the ability of small rodents to go through the tiniest cracks. You should not neglect any cracks or crevices. If you take care of this, they cannot come in.
If you are living in a multi-unit building, any form of individual pest control measures that you take will be ineffective. This is because those pests can travel from one apartment unit to another. To get rid of the bugs completely, your whole building needs to be treated at one time.
Your water system needs to be free of leaks. Moist environments attract pests. If there is a drip far away, they can sense it. Don't let this small problem lead to larger disasters involving pests within the home. Inspect your plumbing regularly and contact a professional if you notice a leak or need help with inspecting the plumbing that is not easily accessible.
Contrary to popular belief, bugs don't just exist where it's messy or littered with food debris. They can live anywhere and thrive especially in areas that don't see a lot of action. Because of this, it's a good idea to go through your closets, basement, attic and other areas that gather dust and tend to be quiet.
Remove dead trees and shrubbery. If you let these dead plants just sit around, you are begging for pests to hang out around your home. Instead, be proactive and remove them the minute you can. If it's not a full tree, but simply a few branches, cut them off immediately.
Focus on plants and gardens that will attract good pests, when landscaping. If you know what the common pests are going to be in your area, you can research which insects prey on them and plant plants that attract those hunters. If you reduce the number of pests outside, there are less pests to come inside.
Don't try to deal with a bee infestation yourself. Hire a professional for this task. It is not easy to figure out whether the bee is from an Africanized colony; trying to learn the species' differences can pose a risk to your health.
Remove full garbage from the home immediately. Garbage left sitting around for too long is one of the main reasons for pest invasions into a home. The minute your garbage is full (or even if it isn't but it's been out for awhile), remove it from your living area and place it in the proper receptacle for pick up.
When you are eating food and you have not finished it, make sure that you store it in sealed containers. If the container you use is not sealed well, it will attract a lot of pests. Use plastic bins or plastic bags that can be sealed, and put them in a place where pests cannot get in.
Household pests can be a terribly vexing dilemma and conquering them can prove to be a real challenge. The key is to learn all you can about effective strategies and methods. Just remember the advice found above, and you will be well prepared to do battle and win the war on pests in decisive fashion.
